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For Gay Pride Month, Billboard asked numerous pop culture luminaries to write 'love letters' to the LGBTQ community. Singer-songwriter Darren Hayes -- who rose to prominence with a slew of hits when he was frontman of Savage Garden has penned the following letter.

"My road to loving myself and being happy in this life started by eliminating the shame I felt about being who I truly was. I grew up in a generation where gay men were ostracized and the world was afraid of what they thought was a ‘gay plague.’ I didn’t have a role model to look up to or an instruction manual to help me navigate my journey. I’m so grateful to all the men and women who came before me, who fought so valiantly to create a world where today, to be openly LGBTQ is not only a possibility but a moment of celebration.

We still have so much further to go, but it’s so important to understand the importance of Pride as an opportunity to be visible and celebrate the freedom to be who we are. I didn’t always love myself, but I do today. My shame is gone -- and there is no better way to underscore that than living loudly and proudly."